Kael wasn’t lying.
The pattern he mentioned was real-the emblem of a werewolf tribe.
And the person who posted that information online seemed to believe in werewolves as though they were an actual species.
The post detailed the unique abilities of werewolves and claimed that each werewolf had a distinct appearance when shifting into their wolf form. At the end of the post, the author left a contact note:
“If anyone is interested in werewolves, feel free to reach out to me.”
I stared at the contact information, lost in thought.
Should I contact this person? Should I discuss werewolves with them?
I figured that, like Magnus, this person must have seen werewolves with their own eyes and even conducted some research. Before stumbling upon this post, I had scoured the internet for information. Most websites offered the same generic details, nothing new.
But this post? It was different.
This person even knew about the totems of various werewolf tribes and claimed to have studied the ones still living in the world today.
It was incredible.
Before I realized what I was doing, I had already sent a friend request to the contact.
Moments later, they accepted.
“Hello, did you find me through my online post?”
“Yes. Why do you know so much about werewolves?” I asked.
“Oh, because I’m a hunter. I specialize in hunting werewolves.”
Their response stunned me.
A hunter? Someone who hunted werewolves?
But how could that be possible? Werewolves were such a mysterious and powerful species. How could a mere human stand against them?
“Miss, why are you so curious about werewolves? Is it because you’ve encountered one?”
Their question sent a chill down my spine.
Even though we were only texting, it felt like they could see right through me.
“No, I’m just curious…”
“Werewolves are cunning. They disguise themselves as humans to get close to you, pretending to care for you. If such a dangerous creature is around you, you must tell me.”
“Alright,” I replied.
But… Kael didn’t seem as vicious as this man described.
And Marek? Ever since he turned into a human and stayed by my side, he had been nothing but kind. He even woke me up when I had nightmares.
“By the way, may I ask where you are right now?” the man suddenly inquired.
“I’m in Storm Town,” I answered. There was no harm in revealing this. The town was large, and even if he had bad intentions, finding me wouldn’t be easy.
“What a coincidence. I just arrived here a couple of days ago.”
I stared at his message in disbelief. Could it really be such a coincidence?
“If you’re interested in learning more about werewolves, we could meet in person and discuss further.”
“I’ll think about it.”
I put down my phone and pressed my hand against my chest.
My heart was racing. I was nervous-terribly so.
This man was a hunter, someone who hunted werewolves. He might know how to deal with Kael and the others, how to keep them away from me.
But a part of me was terrified. If he discovered Kael and the others, would he hurt them?
Damn it. My own kindness was making me feel guilty. I couldn’t tell him about them.
—
The next day, after class, I returned to work at the Eagle Club.
Rebecca greeted me with overwhelming enthusiasm, rushing over to hug me tightly and even planting a kiss on my cheek.
“Darling, it’s so great to have you back! You have no idea how chaotic things got without you. You’re the most important person here!”
Seeing her delighted expression, I smiled faintly. “No, I’m not important. You could fire me anytime.”
I still hadn’t forgotten the day they abruptly let me go.
I knew my place. They only valued me because Kael liked me.
If Kael stopped liking me, they wouldn’t hesitate to throw me out.
I was fully aware of my current position. To them, I was nothing more than a toy.
I had tried to escape from Kael’s grip, but in the end, he had pulled me back to him with overwhelming force.
Now, knowing I couldn’t leave, I had no choice but to accept it.
The work was the same as before, though it felt a lot easier this time.
“You’ll mainly be responsible for the exhibition hall, the main arena, and the training room. You don’t need to worry about the locker rooms anymore,” Rebecca instructed.
“Why not?” Cleaning was cleaning. Why exclude the locker rooms?
“To make things easier for you,” Rebecca coughed, avoiding eye contact. She was lying.
“Kael doesn’t want you in such private spaces…”
I thought about the locker rooms, where men showered and changed clothes. It made sense-it wasn’t exactly appropriate for me to be there.
I smiled at Rebecca. “I understand.”
So it was Kael’s possessiveness again. Was he afraid I’d see too much of other men’s bodies?
But in a club like this, most of them were shirtless anyway. What was there to be so concerned about?
Returning to work felt normal, though I noticed Lucian wasn’t around, which put me at ease.
Magnus greeted me with a smile. “Seraphina, how’s your return to work? Are you adjusting well?”
“It’s fine. It feels easier than before,” I replied honestly.
“That’s good,” Magnus said. “You’re sure you came back willingly? Kael didn’t threaten you, did he?”
“No, no, I came back on my own,” I lied.
I couldn’t tell Magnus that Kael had used him to force me into this. Magnus was gentle and sensitive. If he knew, it would only hurt him.
He was already dragged into this mess because of me. I couldn’t let him suffer more because of my choices.
“That’s good to hear,” Magnus said with relief.
I continued with my work. When I entered the arena, I saw Kael sparring with other boxers in the ring.
To my surprise, this time he wasn’t fighting just one person but two at the same time.
When it was one-on-one, Kael always dominated easily. But now, with two opponents, he was struggling.
He had to attack with both hands while dodging blows from both sides.
Even though Kael was skilled, he still took several solid hits.
I didn’t know why, but seeing Kael pushed against the ropes by the two opponents made my heart tighten painfully.